Pittswood Birds

After yesterdays large total of bird species, I wasn't expecting the same thing today, as it's not very often I get to find all the resident species on consecutive days, plus a few visitors as well!

So it proved, the full patch walk this morning yielded just 43 species, but that was in 3 and half hours, not the nine hours of yesterday :-) Missing species included, Coal Tit, and any kind of raptor, but found today and not yesterday was a COMMON WHITETHROAT, this was singing in the Tree Nursery, where they bred last year, if it's one of last years birds it will have a shock, as the field has been tidied somewhat, and has lost all the habitat now.

A second patch visit was made at around 10:30, I walked up to my sky watching seat at Migrant Alley, and spent a couple of interesting hours there. The first bird I added to the day list, was a flyover YELLOWHAMMER, quickly followed by the local KESTREL, he was hunting over at the Tree Nursery. A female SPARROWHAWK was also added, it flew over the Greenhouse Complex, pursued by half a dozen irrate PIED WAGTAILS :-)

A little later, my first YELLOW WAGTAIL (88,69) for the year flew over, calling as it went, I thought i'd heard one earlier in the day, but its call was drowned out by a passing aircraft, so I dismissed it! Another two singles flew over a few minutes later, the second one circled and almost alighted in the paddocks, but thought better of it once it saw a stable girl there. The Yellow Wagtail sighting today was the earliest for my patch by just one day.

Four other bird species went over, and made the daylist to another 50+ affair, 51 in fact :-) They were GREY HERON, BUZZARD, of which two were up soaring, a lone CORMORANT, and lastly a small group of 5 MEADOW PIPITS, small numbers have been passing through my patch on their way north for over a week now. I was frustrated however, by a group of a dozen 'Martins' that were high up over the College Stables and grounds, I couldn't tell weather they were Sand or House Martins, they didn't stay long and drifted off NW.

So todays year bird takes the year list to 88, and the months list to 69, which puts this April in 6th position out of the ten, but there are sure to be more migrant added to both year and months list, as looking at my stats, late April is when I am likely to see the arrival of of Lesser Whitethroat, Turtle Dove, Swift, House Martin, maybe a Hobby, or if i'm really lucky a Nightingale :-)

I didn't get any photo's whilst out, it was far to dull and cloudy, and even a photo session at the garden feeders was poor, just this BLUE TIT was captured.